SAIGE 2025 Virtual Conference

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Please join us for the 2025 virtual conference- Haunted and Healing: The Necessity of Reslience & Joy!

 

Members of the LGBTGEQIAP+ community are facing new obstacles every day, in addition to the already increased rates of risk in areas such as physical safety, mental health, housing security, and access to healthcare. Now, as much as ever, it is critical that we prioritize the celebration of resilience and joy within the LGBTGEQIAP+ community.

The call to action of SAIGE's 2025 Virtual Conference, Haunted & Healing: The Necessity of Resilience & Joy, is to find joy and resilience during oppressive times for folks in the LGBTGEQIAP+ community. We will invoke the wisdom of those who have come before us – our ancestors, our elders, and our loved ones. Presentations will examine how LGBTGEQIAP+ individuals and communities have found resilience and joy in times of adversity and how this informs our work and experiences as counselors.

We will embrace practices found in cultures that celebrate and create joy around death, such as Día de los Muertos in the Americas, which transforms grief into a ritual of remembrance, joy, and connection. In planning this conference, SAIGE leadership has sought to honor these cultural elements with humility and respect, engaging colleagues with cultural identities and lived experiences to help guide decisions. Our hope is that the conference will not only share knowledge but also serve as a bridge across traditions, creating space for dialogue, learning, and connection.

These profound insights will help us to nourish resilience, pride, and solidarity within LGBTGEQIAP+ communities. At SAIGE, we recognize that this is ongoing work. We are always learning and growing and there will be an opportunity where we invite participants to share feedback and ideas regarding the conference.

 

CONTINUING EDUCATION

All conference sessions are designed to provide continuing education opportunities (CEs) for mental health professionals. With over 40 CEs available, the cost per credit is among the lowest SAIGE has ever offered, reflecting our commitment to affordability and access. Revenue from this event also helps reduce costs for future on-ground conferences, where additional travel and lodging can be barriers. Detailed CE information, including approved credit hours and requirements, will be provided soon.

 

Live Conference Schedule:

Saturday, November 1, 2025

9a PST/12p EST

Presidential Address- Drs. Stacy Pinto & Clark Ausloos

 

10a PST/1p EST

Reclaiming Scholarship for LGBTGEQIAP+ Liberation- Dr. Jeff Moe, Peighton Corley, & DeHaven Sawyer-Mays

LGBTGEQUIAP+ Communities with Religious Trauma: Applying the Indigenous Healing Pyramid- Elizabeth Kurt & Nicole Taylor

 

11a PST/2p EST

FEATURED: Forward, Without Fear: Looking for Light in the Darkness- Dr. Jose Villalba

 

12p PST/3p EST

Supervision that Sees Us: Reflective Practices to Sustain Queer Supervisees in a Time of Cultural Grief- Kimberlee Barrella

Joy as Resistance: Affirmative Counseling Approaches for Queer Clients in Hostile Systems- Caroline Graham & Dr. Sandra Gavin

 

1p PST/4p EST

Intersecting Inequities for Older LGBTQ+ Adults of Color in the Advent of Medicare Access: A Structural Vulnerability Framework- Drs. Christian D. Chan & Jordan B. Wescott

Pleasure as Protest: Queer Sexuality and Radical Self-Care- Laurie Bonjo, Emily Hotz, Serg Walker, Mia Yopp, & Sean Laragy

 

Sunday, November 2, 2025

10a PST/1p EST

FEATURED: Dr. Brandon Haddock

 

11a PST/2p EST

Building Identities Beyond Binaries: Virtual Worlds as Safe Spaces for TGE Identity Development- Laurie Bonjo, Cody Helgesen, Dana Albert, Serg Walker, Mia Yopp, & Sean Laragy

Bridging Theory and Practice: Developing Microaggression Response Competence in Counselor Educators and Supervisors- Drs. Sandra Gavin & Krissy Treviranus

 

12p PST/3p EST

Colonization to Decolonization: How Traditional Practices Can Foster Healing and Resilience in Two Spirit Native North Americans- Drs. Amney Castaneda & Rachel Gilreath, and Elizabeth Combs

Mapping Queer Resilience: Navigating Systems, Relationships, and Story Through the Three Circles of Influence- Jacob Thomas & Dr. Kate Johnson

 

1p PST/4p EST

Teaching in Hostile Times: Cultivating Queer Joy and Resistence in Counselor Education- Drs. Suzy Wise 7 Melissa J Fickling

We Mourn, We Celebrate: Holding Grief and Joy for Queer and Trans* Clients- Kimberlee Barrella

 

 

 

...And many more pre-recorded sessions for you to access & gain CEs!

Register here!